There is little doubt that Pokemon had a 2025 that was full of ups and downs. New games, DLC announcements, major leaks, and card fever, Pokemon certainly made a mark on 2025. Here is a look back at Pokemon in 2025, the Good, Bad and the Meh.
Let’s get the bad out of the way and end on a good note.
Pokemon Cards
The bad for Pokemon starts with one of its biggest moneymakers, cards. While the market for Pokemon cards has been a big one for a long time, the explosion since 2020 is one that has redefined card collecting. Specifically around the investment and pricing.
Because of this, scalpers have caused prices to skyrocket. Packs used to cost somewhere between $4 and $5 USD, now, it is not uncommon to see prices of at least $7 and many quickly climbing to $10+ within a few weeks. These price changes have even spread into other games as collecting has been shown to be a potentially lucrative business invesment.
The hope will be that 2026 will see some improvements as the meteoric rise in costs have priced many people out.
The Teraleaks from 2024 caused quite a bit of concern for Pokemon.
So much so that it was rumored that entire games have been pushed back or cancelled due to them. In a time where Pokemon was in a bit of a lull, someone stole not only deep Pokemon secrets but personal information as well. This has lead to fans having a general idea of what is coming and what we missed out on.
There are many who have enjoyed all of the new information but also many have felt like the backlash from The Pokemon Company has not been worth the gains.
Quick links: Main Page · All Pokemon Legends Z-A Guides · All Pokemon Legends Z-A Wild Zone Guides · All Pokemon Mega Evolution Guides · All Pokemon Legends Z-A Missions
New Megas Mega Dimension Pokemon Legends Z-A DLC
As we were all preparing for the first major Pokemon game in years, the DLC Mega Dimension was announced.
Initially, the surprise hit fans everywhere. Then, once they had time to digest it, the opinions varied. Some were very excited to see more new Mega Pokemon and a continuation of a story that had yet to come out. Others felt it was in bad taste to announce something that would cost more money before the main game came out.
While things have subsided now that both Legends Z-A and Mega Dimension are released, it will certainly be an interesting marketing tactic to see if Pokemon will try again in the future.
For the most part, many of the Live Service games that Pokemon has felt either left behind or lacking in many ways.
Pokemon TCG Pocket for example has left some worrying about staying power. While the initial numbers have been very strong, the lack of response from TPC and decisions made to release without trading and add it with so many other issues have players worried for its future. Along with this, games like Pokemon GO and Pokemon Unite, while still popular or with a dedicated fanbase, have been very much afterthoughts for many.
Fans of these games will have to hope for a stronger 2026 as we head toward the 30th Anniversary.
Yes, Leaks will be in every section. They were a big part of 2024 and 2025.
The meh portion of this is more about the things that we did not get as Pokemon fans. Mainly different trial games that could have come out and even a Flying-type Eeveelution. Alas, The Pokemon Company at some point felt that these things would not work well for various reasons.
Again, some may have felt like these were fun things to learn about and hope for the future. While others likely felt disapointed that TPC would cut so many things that could have been great.
While not the hit that Legends Arceus was, it was a game that made major changes and was a step in the right direction for Pokemon.
The combat is innovative, the story was interesting and the new Mega Evolutions were generally liked. That is a lot of big swings in one game and while not everything was a success, it certainly felt like this game was worth the wait. The hope is that more Pokemon games will have this amount of polish with more gameplay and love given they have decided to take more time between games.
If you are someone who enjoys learning more about the future of Pokemon, then the leaks were an absolute treasure trove.
We have a general idea of how things will look all the way through 2030 and even a little beyond. Generations 10 and 11 are planned with some other games including rumors of a new Legends game as well. Even if these things do not pan out exactly as planned, it is still good to see that Pokemon is trying new things and willing to make fun and interesting new additions to a franchise heading into 2030.
We will end the 2025 recap with a look ahead.
The 30th Anniversary of Pokemon looks to be one of the best. We are slated to get at least three new games and two republished games along with likely a slew of major announcements in February. The new games are Pokemon Champions, Pokemon Pokopia, Pokemon Gen 10. While the republishes are on the Nintendo Switch 2 Online in Pokemon Coloseum and Pokemon XD Gales of Darkness.
There is little doubt that even with the leaks, The Pokemon Company have something else up their sleeves.
Hopefully you have had a great 2025 and enjoyed Pokemon in this year. We look forward to 2026 and what should be a momumental year for the franchise.
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